Efficacy of Modified Treat-and-Extend Regimen of Aflibercept for Macular Edema from Branch Retinal Vein Occlusion: 2-Year Prospective Study Outcomes

Yusuke Arai; Hidenori Takahashi; Satoru Inoda; Shinichi Sakamoto; Xue Tan; Yuji Inoue; Satoko Tominaga; Hidetoshi Kawashima; Yasuo Yanagi

doi:10.3390/jcm10143162

Efficacy of Modified Treat-and-Extend Regimen of Aflibercept for Macular Edema from Branch Retinal Vein Occlusion: 2-Year Prospective Study Outcomes

J Clin Med. 2021 Jul 17;10(14):3162. doi: 10.3390/jcm10143162.

Authors

Yusuke Arai¹, Hidenori Takahashi^{1

2

3}, Satoru Inoda¹, Shinichi Sakamoto¹, Xue Tan^{2

3}, Yuji Inoue⁴, Satoko Tominaga¹, Hidetoshi Kawashima¹, Yasuo Yanagi⁵

Affiliations

¹ Department of Ophthalmology, Jichi Medical University, 3311-1 Yakushiji, Shimotsuke-shi, Tochigi 329-0498, Japan.
² Japan Community Health Care Organization Tokyo Shinjuku Medical Center, 5-1 Tsukudocho, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 162-8543, Japan.
³ Department of Ophthalmology, Graduate School of Medicine, University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8655, Japan.
⁴ Department of Ophthalmology, Teikyo University, 2-11-1 Kaga, Itabashi-ku, Tokyo 173-8605, Japan.
⁵ The Ophthalmology & Visual Sciences Academic Clinical Program, Duke-NUS Medical School, National University of Singapore, Singapore 169857, Singapore.

Abstract

This study aimed to evaluate the long-term (24-month) efficacy and safety of a modified treat-and-extend (mTAE) regimen of aflibercept for macular edema (ME) due to branch retinal vein occlusion (BRVO). This was a prospective multicenter intervention study. We evaluated 50 eyes in 50 patients with ME due to BRVO enrolled between October 2016 and September 2017. The patients received intravitreal aflibercept (IVA) injections according to a mTAE regimen for 24 months. This study reports the secondary endpoints of best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) and central subfield thickness (CST) at 24 months and compares them with previously reported primary endpoints. Compared with baseline BCVA and CST of 0.33 (0.27) and 488 (165) µm (mean (standard deviation)), respectively, BCVA and CST were significantly improved at 12 and 24 months (12 months: 0.059 (0.19) LogMAR and 299 (112) µm; 24 months: 0.034 (0.18) LogMAR and 272 (81) µm, respectively; both p < 0.0001). Over the 24-month period, the mean number of IVA injections and clinic visits was 7.4 (3.3) and 11.1 (2.0), respectively. The mTAE regimen of IVA injections for ME due to BRVO was effective for improving BCVA and reducing CST over 24 months. This regimen shows promise for reducing the number of injections and clinic visits.

Keywords: anti-vascular endothelial growth factor; branch retinal vein occlusion; modified treat-and-extend regimen; prospective multicenter intervention study.